Putting God First - Appreciation

As I was preparing my heart before going to the radio station last night, I opened my Bible to look for my favorite passage I like to read before giving my testimony or public speaking. This was an AM radio talk show and I've never done anything like that before so I wasn't sure what to expect. Before I found the passage I was interested in, I came across this other passage. It was highlighted in my old worn Bible with pages that are barely bond in with the others anymore. The leather cover on this Bible is frayed on all sides from use. It is like an old friend, comfortable and full of memories. I don't use it as much as I once had because it is so fragile now. But every once in a while I like to pick it up and read from it because I know that I have many things highlighted in it and many notes written in the margins. Next to this particular passage I had scribbled “WOW! How beautiful this is!!!!”

2 Corinthians 3:2-3
The only letter of recommendation we need is you yourselves. Your lives are a letter written in our hearts; everyone can read it and recognize our good work among you. Clearly, you are a letter from Christ showing the result of our ministry among you. This “letter” is written not with pen and ink, but with the Spirit of the living God. It is carved not on tablets of stone, but on human hearts.

Did that move you in any way? If not then I suggest saying a quick prayer and reading it one more time. This time slowly soaking in each sentence as if it was written to you from someone who taught you about Christ.

You are a living letter that God is using for others to read about who He is and about how much He loves them. Wow!

October is Pastor appreciation month. I have had the privilege of being taught by some of the finest Pastors over the years. Even now, I feel blessed to be in a church with Pastors who take their calling seriously and invest their time in my life and the lives of others. They are doing a "good work".

There are others in my life who have done a "good work" as well. These women love the Lord and it shows. That love pours out of them and flows on to everyone they have contact with. I remember a woman who invested time in meeting with me and teaching me from God's word things I somehow missed as a child. I remember another woman who mentored me as I began to search for what God wanted me to do with my life. Then there is this one dear woman, a "Timothy" to me as she is younger than I am, yet much wiser than almost anyone else I know. I remember my mom one time when we were going through a family crisis sitting us all down and saying something like, "You kids need to understand what my priorities are. First it is to God, then to your father, then to you kids." I did not understand this then, but now I understand in full.

As I type these memories my mind is flooded with so many more. God has been good to me. Surrounding me with men and women who have helped me grow in my wisdom of the Lord. Using them to carve His love story on the tablet of my heart.

So I close this post and dedicate it with GREAT appreciation to all the "pastors" in my life! May God bless them above and beyond how they have blessed me.

AMEN

Putting God First - Conviction

Have you ever heard or read God’s word and something just pings in your heart in a way that you know God is trying to convict you of something? That happened to me this morning. I was listening to the radio and the preacher was teaching from 1 Thessalonians 3:12:
And may the Master pour on the love so it fills your lives and splashes over on everyone around you, just as it does from us to you.

On the surface this is a verse I’ve heard many times and one that usually doesn’t trip me up. As I'm driving I'm praying for the day and for things on my heart. I'm asking God to step in and change our city so those hurting will find places that give hope and life. At this point I'm probably feeling pretty good about myself because I’m starting my day in this fashion when the radio preacher says something like…

“Isn’t it easy to let God’s love flow out of you with people you like? BUT what about people you don’t like. How are you loving them?”

He didn’t say anything about ever liking them, just loving them. Loving them? I must confess that there are people in this world that I don't like. And so loving them certainly is not something that ever crossed my mind. Just the thought is challenging and to add to that an action like “how are you showing them love” is almost incomprehensible for me.

Yet, Christ died on the cross for them too. He loved them so much that he endured the pain and the shame of their sins along with my own. That is HOW He showed His love. Am I willing to follow Christ’s example? Oh, I don’t think that God is asking me to endure death on a cross but I do believe that He wants me to allow myself to show love to those I don’t like. To let my pride and my ego die. So I’m left, and challenged with, “how” do I show that love? Here are some initial thoughts:
1. To not wish harm on them.
2. To not harbor nasty thoughts about them or allow my mouth to speak poorly about them.
3. To pray sincerely and humbly for them.
4. Possibly to go out of my way to do something nice for them.

Could God call me to do more than that? Yes. Will I be ready when He does? With Christ’s love filled in me I believe it is possible.

Father God, once again I am amazed at your unlimited love. You have touched my heart in a place I did not know needed to be corrected. Help me to love those I don’t like in real ways that require action not just thought. Fill me with your love to the place where it overflows and splashes out onto every person I meet. God you know who needs to be loved today and you do that through your people. May you use me to love someone today. AMEN